Manually operated key for electronic keyer



April 23, 1963 w. B. HUDDLESTON 3,037,037

MANUALLY OPERATED KEY FOR ELECTRONIC KEYER Filed Sept. 23, 1960 '2Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

MKW

ATTORNEY April 1963 w. B. HUDD LESTON 3,087,037

MANUALLY OPERATED KEY FOR ELECTRONIC KEYER Filed Sept. 25, 1960 '2Sheets-Sheet 2 W////0m 15. f/udd/eJ/0/7 INVENTOR.

ZZMJW "nite States This invention relates to a device for opening andclosing electrical circuits, and more particularly to a manuallyoperated switch or telegraph key for use with an electronic keyingdevice for the transmission of radio telegraph signals.

In the operation of radio telegraph apparatus, as commonly practiced,electronic circuits are employed including electronic keying apparatuswhich functions to open and close the circuits to form dots and dashes.For this purpose, it is customary to use an electronic keyer havingcircuits which are adapted to be separately energized and one of whichwhen closed functions to cause the intermittent operation of the radioapparatus to produce short signals or dots while the other circuit whenclosed functions to cause the intermittent operation of the apparatus toproduce somewhat longer signals or dashes. Electronic keying apparatusof this kind is well known and is used in conjunction with a manuallyoperable switch or key by which the circuits of the apparatus areseparately opened and closed. By the use of such apparatus it becomesunnecessary for the operator to open and close the circuits for each dotor dash which is to be transmitted, but a series of dots or dashes maybe transmitted by merely holding the key in one position or the otherfor a suitable period. A switch or telegraph key which is to be used inthis type of equipment must be of a very delicately balanced orsensitive type, in order to assure that the circuits are easily closedand opened in response to manual operation of the key and also toprovide for quick opening of the circuits when the key is released. Itis for the purpose of providing a key of improved construction andsensitivity that the present invention has been developed.

The invention has for an important object the provision of a key for theoperation of electrical circuits embodying spaced apart contacts and amovable element positioned for manual movement into and out of contactwith either of said contacts and including means for returning themovable element to a position out of contact with either of the contactswhen the movable element is released.

Another object of the invention is to provide a key of the kindmentioned in which the means for returning the movable element to itsneutral or out-of-contact position is designed to interpose a minimum ofresistance to the movement of the element into engagement with either ofthe contacts, but which at the same time is efiective to move theelement to out-of-contact position with a minimum of delay when theelement is released.

A further object of the invention is to provide a torsion mount for themovable element of a telegraph key by which the element is moved to andheld in out-of-contact position when the element is released but whichis of improved sensitivity to manual movement of the element to circuitclosing position.

Another object of the invention is the provision of the key of the typereferred to having spaced apart contacts and a movable element supportedbetween the contacts and including means for causing the element to movein a substantially straight path during movement of the element into andout of engagement with the contacts.

A further object of the invention is to provide a contact key of thecharacter described having spaced apart contacts, a movable elementmounted for movement into and out of contact with either of the contactsand which is arranged to assume an intermediate position between atentthe contacts when released, and means for damping the movement of theelement.

7 A still further object of the invention is to provide a manualoperable circuit making and breaking instrument of the kind mentionedwhich is of simple design and rugged construction, whose sensitivity oroperating characteristics are easily adjusted and whose parts are easilyreplaced for purposes of repair.

The above and other important objects and advantages of the inventionmay best be understood from the following detailed description,constituting a specification of the same, when considered in conjunctionwith the annexed drawings, wherein FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of apreferred embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a central, horizontal, cross-sectional view of theembodiment of the invention as illustrated in FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view, taken along the line3-3 of FIGURE 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view, partly in cross-section, illustrating amodified form of the invention;

FIGURE 5 is an end elevational view of the embodiment of the inventionillustrated in FIGURE 4, looking at the left end of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 5 looking at the right endof the embodiment of the inven tion as illustrated in FIGURE 4 androtated ninety degrees about the longitudinal axis of the device asshown in FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 7 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 4 illustrating a furthermodified form of the invention; and

FIGURE 8 is an end elevational view of the embodiment illustrated inFIGURE 7, looking at the left end of FIGURE 7.

Referring now to the drawings in greater detail the embodiment of theinvention illustrated in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 includes a suitable supportor base, generally indicated at '10, which may be formed of anyconvenient material, preferably of a size and weight to hold the devicestationary during the operation of the key, and having an upright, frontwall portion 12 upon which the operating parts of the key are mounted.

The wall portion 12 has an opening 14 therethrough and a contact and keylever supporting frame 16, of generally U shape, is mounted on the rearface of the wall '12 extending rearwardly therefrom at the level of theopening. The frame 16 is formed of suitable electrically insulatingmaterial, such as plastic, or the like, and may be attached to the wall12 in any convenient manner,, as by means of screws 18 extending throughthe wall 12 on opposite sides of the opening 14 and into the ends of thearms of the frame.

The arms of the frame 16 are provided with internally threaded openings20, within which contact elements 22 are threadably inserted, whichcontact elements extend inwardly of the arms, with the inner ends of theelements in spaced apart relation. Each of the openings 20 is alsoprovided with a screw 24, provided outwardly of the outer end of thecontact element 22 therein, and by which an electrical conductor 26 maybe clamped to the contact element to connect the same into an electricalcircuit. By this arrangement, it will be apparent that the contactelements 22 may be adjusted in the openings 20 to space the inner endsof the contact elements at any desired distance apart. The contactelements 22 may, of course, be formed of any suitable electricalconducting material, and may be provided at their inner ends withcontact faces formed of silver or other suitable highly conductivematerial.

The frame 16 is also provided with a bottom slot 38, formed in thebottom of the U and which opens outwardly between the arms of the U, andthe frame is also provided with internally threaded opposite sideopenings 30 opening into the slot 28, for the reception of clampingscrews 32. A screw 34 is threadably inserted in one of the side openings30, outwardly of the clamping screw 32 therein, by which a conductor 38is clampingly engaged between the screws 32 and 34, to connect the sameinto an electrical circuit.

The opening 141 is formed with an external counterbore portion 40,within the bottom of which a thin, flexible disc 42 is positioned, thedisc being retained in the counterbore by means of a retainer ring 44,positioned in the counterbore and removably held therein as by means ofscrews 46, or the like. The disc 42 is preferably formed of thin, sheetmetal, and has a central opening therethrough through which a key lever48 is extended between the arms of the frame 16, the key lever beingsuitably secured to the disc as by means of soldering and havingattached to its outer end a suitable plate 50' for manual operation ofthe lever. A flat, flexible metallic spring blade 52 is connected to theinner end of the lever 48, as by means of an end slot in the lever intowhich one end of the spring is extended, the spring extending inwardlybeyond the inner end of the lever 48 between the arms of the frame andinto the slot 28, where the other end portion of the spring is clampedsecurely between the screws 32. The spring blade 52 may be provided withsuitable contact pads 54, located for movement into and out of contactwith the inner ends of the contact elements 22 by operation of thelever, to make and break electrical connection between conductors 26 andthe conductor 38 through the spring.

The conductors 26 and 38 are suitably connected into electronic keyingcircuits of conventional construction, so that upon movement of thelever in one direction, one circuit will be closed to actuate theelectronic keying device to transmit dashes, and upon movement of thelever in the other direction, another circuit will be closed to causethe electronic keying device to transmit dots.

It will be apparent that the flexible disc 14 will be effective to holdthe key lever in a centralized position when the lever is released, sothat the spring blade 52 will be centrally positioned between and out ofcontact with the contact elements 22 to open both of the circuits of theelectronic keying device. Thus, in the operation of the key, the levermay be moved in one direction to close one of the circuits to transmitdashes or to move the lever into another direction to close the othercircuit to transmit dots, the respective circuits being closed for aslong a period as may be desired to transmit the desired signals. By theuse of this apparatus, it will also be apparent that signal dots ordashes may be transmitted or by holding the circuits closed forpredetermined periods of time, a series of dots or dashes may betransmitted. The invention also possesses the advantage that the contactelements 22 may be adjusted to require more or less movement of the keylever to establish contact, so that the sensitivity of the key may beincreased or decreased, as desired.

A somewhat modified form of the invention is illustrated in FIGURES 4, 5and 6, wherein the supporting base 16 has been left out for purposes ofsimplification. In this form of the invention, the key lever supportingframe 16 takes the form of a cylinder of suitable material, such asplastic, which is attached to the supporting base, not shown, in amanner similar to that described in connection with the form of theinvention illustrated in FIGURES l, 2 and 3. The cylinder 16 beingprovided with opposite contact elements 22', threadably extended throughsuitable openings in the cylinder with the inner ends of the elementspositioned in spaced apart relation within the bore of the cylinder. Thecylinder 16 has an outwardly opening counterbore portion 40' at one end,and a thin, flexible disc 42 is positioned in the bottom of thecounterbore and retained therein, as by means of the retainer ring 44',held in the counterbore by suitable means, such as the screws 46. Thedisc 42 has a central opening, through which a screw 56 is extended intothe inner end of a key lever 48', which extends into the bore of thecylinder between the contact elements 22', and which carry the contactpads 54', positioned for contact with the inner ends of the contactelements 22. The key lever 48' is also provided with an openingtherethrough through which a damping element in the form of a flexibleWire 53 extends, which is disposed diametrically of the bore of thecylinder and anchored at its opposite ends in the cylinder wall.

The key lever 48' may be provided with a suitable operating know orplate, not shown, such as the plate 50 previously described, by whichthe lever is actuated.

' The contact elements 22. are suitably connected with conductors, notshown, such as the conductors 2'6, and the lever 48' is likewisesuitably connected with a conductor, not shown, such as the conductor38, whereby the key may be connected into the electrical circuits of theelectronic keying device, in the manner previously described.

The form of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 is operatedin thesame manner as previously described, the key lever 48' being movedin one direction to close one of the circuits of the electronic keyingdevice and in the other direction to close the other circuit thereof,and the lever being returned to its centralized out-ofcontact positionwhen released by the action of the flexible disc 42. In the operation ofthe lever 48', the damping Wire 58 will be effective to hold the leveragainst vibration 1which might other-wise interfere with the sensitivityof the A further modification of the invention is illustrated in FIGURES7 and 8, wherein a supporting frame lid" is of cylindrical shape,similar to the supporting frame 16 and the key lever 48 is supported atone end on the frame by means of a thin, flexible metallic strip 60,

extending diametrically across the frame at one end thereof and into anend slot 62 formed in the end of the lever. The lever 48' extends fromend to end of the cylinder and behind one end thereof, and may beprovided at its outer end with an operating know or plate, not shown,similar to the plate 5%. In other respects, this form of the inventionis constructed in the same manner as the form of the inventionillustrated in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 and is similarly operated. It will beapparent that the torsion element 60 performs a similar function to theflexible disc %2' in that it acts to return the lever 46 to a centralout-of-contact position when the lever is released.

It will thus be seen that the invention, constructed as described above,provides a manually operable key for electrical circuits, which is ofsimple design and rugged construction, and in which the sensitivity ofthe key may be finely adjusted to accommodate individual requirements,and also in which the key lever is restrained against vibrationalmovement during its operation.

The invention is disclosed herein in connection with certain specificembodiments of the same, but it will be understood that these areintended by way of illustration only and that various changes may bemade in the construction and arrangement of the parts within the spiritof the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus clearly shown and described the invention, what is claimedas new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a manually operable key for opening and closing electricalcircuits, a support, spaced apart electrical contacts on the support, amanually movable member, a flexible element connecting the member to thesupport, electrical contact means on the member including an elongatedflexible blade positioned for flexing movement into engagement with oneof said contacts upon movement of the member in one direction of flexingmovement of said element and with the other of said contacts uponmovement of the member in another direction of flexing movement of saidelement, and vibration damping means on the support positioned forengagement with the member at a location spaced longitudinally from saidelement to resist vibrational movement of the member.

2. In a manually operable key for opening and closing electricalcircuits, a support having an opening therethrough, spaced apartelectrical contacts on the support, a manually movable member positionedin the opening and extending between said contacts, a flexible elementforming a connection bet-ween said member and support to yieldingly holdthe member in a central lized position between said contacts, contactmeans on the member positioned for movement into and out of engagementwith said contacts upon movement of the member toward and away from thecontacts and vibration damping means on the support positioned forengagement with said member at a location remote from said element toresist vibrational movement of said member.

3. In a manually operable key for opening and closing electricalcircuits, a support having an opening therethrough, spaced apartelectrical contacts on the support on opposite sides of :the axis of theopening, a flexible, disk-like e-lement connected about its externalperiphery to the support in the opening, and having a central aperture:therethrough, an elongated manually operable member extending throughsaid aperture and opening and connected to said element to support themember for angular movement relative to the support by flexing of theelement, electrical contact means including an e1ongated, flexible bladeconnected at one end to the member for flexing movement into engagementwith one of said contacts upon angular movement of the member in onedirection and with the other of said contacts upon angular movement ofthe member in the other direction and means for anchoring the other endof said blade to the support to resist angular vibrational movement ofsaid member in either direction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,204,675 Lyon Nov. 14, 1916 1,893,179 Parsons Jan. 3, 1933 2,128,427Means Aug. 30, 1938 2,383,973 Jones Sept. 4, 1945 2,814,678 McFarlandNov. 26, 1957

1. IN A MANUALLY OPERABLE KEY FOR OPENING AND CLOSING ELECTRICALCIRCUITS, A SUPPORT, SPACED APART ELECTRICAL CONTACTS ON THE SUPPORT, AMANUALLY MOVABLE MEMBER, A FLEXIBLE ELEMENT CONNECTING THE MEMBER TO THESUPPORT, ELECTRICAL CONTACT MEANS ON THE MEMBER INCLUDING AN ELONGATEDFLEXIBLE BLADE POSITIONED FOR FLEXING MOVEMENT INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH ONEOF SAID CONTACTS UPON MOVEMENT OF THE MEMBER IN ONE DIRECTION OF FLEXINGMOVEMENT OF SAID ELEMENT AND WITH THE OTHER OF SAID CONTACTS UPON